MIDNIGHT RIDER PART 14

'Ro!'someone screamed.Roha opened her eyes,but there was no one in front of her.The ghost of Sir Edmund Hathway had vanished in thin air!

'Ro are you Ok?'Amish yelled frantically.

'I..I am f..fine.'she replied shakily.

'But where did he go?'

'Who?'Kyra asked 'There is no one here beside us.'

'No,he was here,that old man...he....'

'Guys we can discuss this later.Right now we need to reach hotel as soon as possible or Mrs.D'souza will hamstring us.'Amish said solemnly,pulling Roha and Kyra along with him.

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'Did you actually see that phantom of Sir Edmund Hathway?'Kyra asked for what would have been hundredth time in an hour.

'If you ask this one more time,I am surely gonna chuck this vase on you!'Roha warned irritably.

'I am sorry,but I simply can't grapple with the idea of a ghost haunting this town.What with those goons,its pretty much icing on top!'Kyra muttered warily,looking fearful.

'Don't be a dickhead Ky! How on earth is a decade old dead lunatic supposed to be roaming about the streets now?'

The recent incident had thawed Amish and Kyra out.Sometimes some strange or a highly dangerous situation-as in the case of Roha-can restore your friendship and rendezvous with the ghost of a nutter officer was one of those things.

'Exactly!There has got to be some logic,an explaination to it that we are unable to see!'

'But Ro....you saw the ghost and so have many others.How can so many people be mistaken?'

'Ky,Indian mentality  is marred by superstitious dogmas.Its steeped so deep that at times we fail to see the mundane practicality in such situations.But if you look at it prudently,you'll see that superstitions in the present age of science and technology is pretty oxymoronic.'

'S are you planning to go back there and do a bit of sleuthing?'Amish asked quitely.

'Don't give her ideas Ami!How thick will Roha have to be to go back there?'

'I'm neither going back there,nor leaving it.'She gritted her teeth.

'I'll be damned if I don't find out what the heck is going on here.'Roha resolved,her face just as determined and obstinate as her voice.

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Thoroughly drained and sleepy after night's adventure,Roha,Amish and Kyra trudged lazily behind their gushing classmates.They were going atop hill Ratna which enjoyed a great penchant of being the most picturesque one in Jalna and the words couldn't have been truer!

                                                              Nestled in the lap of lush green maze, its foot was washed by the gurgling stream,which was deepest at the place as compared to anywhere in Jalna.The scarlet great orb in the sky had illuminated it with purest of gold,adorning it magnificently.The sight literally rendered them breathless,entranced by its beauty.

                                                             Soon everyone took to feverishly clicking their cameras,impatient to capture the scenery.Roha slowly walked around,taking pictures to cherish the memories forever.Lost as she was,isolated by quite a distance from her friends,she didn't notice a creepy shadow sneak behind her.

                                                                                                                       Suddenly she was grabbed from behind and smothered.She struggled desperately to free herself,but she was no match to the man's power.The stranger lifted her as effortlessly as if she were a rag doll and pushed her off the edge.With a bloodcurdling shriek,Roha tumbled down,to hit deep,icy water below.